God’s Unexpected Plans Write the Best Story
Welcome Advent! We entered the time of year when everyone officially anticipates. People anticipate family gatherings, holiday lights, seasonal parties, gift shopping, gift giving, and gift receiving. Those of us who know Jesus is the reason for the season look forward to special church services, reading the Christmas story, singing carols, and worshiping the Christ child.
A Different Holiday Season
My sweet Pastor husband and I anticipate a different holiday season this year. We will still host a holiday dinner, though this year I will cater. I am grateful since we will entertain over a hundred people! My sweet Pastor husband still decorated the eaves of the house with lights, and we set up our tree even though we did it before Thanksgiving.
However, this year I won’t sing in a church choir. We didn’t spend a Sunday afternoon decorating the church along with friends. I will miss the annual teen Christmas party at our previous church along with their fun holiday costume contest. In exchange, we will spend Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with our daughter and her husband. In addition, we will spend a couple of days lounging at our son’s house and playing with his dog.
Plans are Good
We all make plans for Christmas; and plans are good. We experience the most we can of a marvelous season when we make plans. We set our intentions to delight those we love, create new memories, encourage our friends, and clearly state how much we love those in our life.
When you read the Christmas story, you don’t read about Mary and Joseph making plans. However, I think we can assume they were. After all, they were a young couple in preparation of a new life together. And like any young couple, they were probably excited, hopeful, and eagerly discussing all the various possibilities. However, life doesn’t necessarily go as we plan.
A Change of Plans
“This was how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. His mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they were married, she found out that she was going to have a baby by the Holy Spirit. Joseph as a man who always did what was right, but he did not want to disgrace Mary publicly; so, he made plans to break the engagement privately.”
Matthew 1:19-20, GNT
I think Mary had already adapted to being pregnant by the time Joseph found out. I wonder if that made the situation more difficult for Joseph. As any groom, he had hopes and dreams, but they were now shattered. I’m convinced he struggled to know the best way to deal with this new circumstance.
Many of us encounter brief moments during the Christmas season when we must adapt to a new circumstance. How we imagined a particular holiday event would turn out is clearly not going to be as we hoped. Perhaps we decided on the perfect gift for a loved one, but now it’s sold out. Or that new recipe we were sure would be a hit flops instead. Or even worse, we receive an unexpected bill that destroys our Christmas gift giving budget.
Creating a New Plan
We deal with feelings of sorrow, desperation, and/or fear because of a disruption to our plans. So, we establish new plans to somehow make do with what now is. Joseph did the same thing. Mary’s announcement shattered his plans, and so he needed to create a new one.
I think Joseph agonized over his new plan. Matthew tells us Joseph didn’t want to disgrace Mary. I suspect he was deeply hurt, and yet he didn’t want to destroy her. I imagine he wasn’t sure what to do; it seemed wrong as a faithful Jewish man to marry a woman who didn’t appear to be pure. Joseph landed on his plan to divorce her privately.
God’s Plan
God had a different plan. Matthew tells us in the next verse that an angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream. The angel told Joseph, “…do not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife. For it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived.” (Matthew 1:20, GNT) God intervened and gave Joseph His plan.
Honestly, Joseph amazes me with his faith. We don’t know if he questioned God in any way. When I read the rest of Matthew chapter one, I envision Joseph waking up, going to Mary, and saying, “Well, I guess we better get married sooner than later.” Joseph had to completely let go of his plan and accept God’s plan wholeheartedly.
The truth is, no matter how great our plans seem, we must make sure our plans align with God’s plan. If you are like me, your plans are in full color, with music and dancing. I see how the plan is to be! For me to let go of my brightly envisioned plans is not easy.
A Better Story
God’s plan gave Joseph a better story. In fact, God’s plan gave all of us a better story. This Christmas are you willing to listen and let go of your plans? If God has a different idea than what you imagined, will you allow God to write you a better story?
Think for a moment. Perhaps God desires you spend less on gifts than you first thought so you can be generous to someone in need. Maybe God has laid the name of someone on your heart and He’s nudging you to include them in your Christmas Day celebration. Is God challenging you to volunteer instead of spending a day shopping? Or is He asking you to invite someone to participate with you as you make holiday preparations?
We can still plan to delight our family, create memories, encourage others, and celebrate those we love. I believe when we follow God’s plan to a better story, our plans have a distinct flair of glory. We move through advent with a kinder heart. We offer more grace. Plus, others see God’s generosity and love in how we anticipate the coming of Jesus. Let’s make plans this advent to follow God’s plan. After all, He writes the best story.
Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus Photo by Philippa Lowe on Unsplash
